Following the first ejection of coach Scott Drew's career, Baylor athletic director Mack Rhoades said he couldn't stay silent about the officiating after the No. 18 Bears' 70-68 victory over No. 18 Iowa State. 12 in Waco, Texas, calling him “an embarrassment to this league.”
Baylor led 54-44 midway through the second half when Drew received his second technical foul for leaving the practice area, resulting in an ejection. Iowa State went on a 17-0 run to take a 61-54 lead after the ejection.
“I'm not someone who calls the refs or the league after every game,” Rhoades told reporters. “I actually never call when it comes to officiating. It's always about 'We need to play better, we need to execute better, we need to play harder,' all those things. But tonight was an embarrassment for this league. We have the best league. of basketball in the country, and tonight's refereeing was not up to par. Period. End of story.
At the end of the first half, Baylor had a 15-point lead over the Cyclones, who got back into the game in the second half. Jayden Nunn's layup with two seconds left to put Baylor ahead. Iowa State's Milan Momcilovic hit a deep 3-pointer, but it was disallowed after referees ruled the shot was fired after the buzzer sounded.
Drew had coached 706 games in his career and had never been ejected before Saturday. He said he was happy to see his team recover without him. He said he did not receive “an explanation” for his expulsion.
“Obviously, I'm very excited right now,” Drew said. “I'm very proud of the staff and what they were able to accomplish. I'm very excited about the players' recovery. Obviously, I've never been sent off. I haven't tried to get me sent off, otherwise I probably would have been sent off sooner.” “.
In 2017, the coaches' box was expanded to give coaches more space on the bench. But it's common to see coaches go out of bounds during a game. The 2023-24 NCAA men's basketball rulebook included coaching staff monitoring as a point of concern this season.
“Additional attention/focus must be given to the consistent application of bench decorum, coaches' box and unsportsmanlike conduct rules for both players and bench personnel,” the rulebook says.
Although coaches can be reprimanded for leaving the bench, the punishment rarely goes beyond a stern warning.
Rhoades said he will contact the Big 12 office.
“This league needs to improve when we think about our officiating,” he said. “And we have some fantastic referees. But this particular team tonight didn't rise to the level of this game. And that shouldn't happen in this league. I'm going to fight for our program. I'm going to fight for our school. I'm going to fight for our coaches. We are going to fight for our student-athletes. “I'll be on the phone tomorrow.”
